The Village Square: May 30, 2016

I hope you’re enjoying the long weekend. Mine has been spectacular: not only did I attend Gamex 2016, but I also got to hang out with my fellow Star Wars geeks at a Star Wars Reads Day event, where we got to see Billy Dee Williams read Where The Wild Things Are. In case you’re wondering: yes, he’s still the smoothest scoundrel in the galaxy.

AcquireAt ACD Games Day 2016, Avalon Hill previewed its new edition of Sid Sackson’s classic Acquire.

Epic ExpansionTiny Epic Galaxies was one of my favorite games of 2015 (I was a sucker for dice last year, as shown by my love of Roll for the Galaxy and Steampunk Rally). At this weekend’s Gamex 2016, I talked to Gamelyn Games’ Michael Coe about the TEG expansion, Beyond the Black. Not only does it have new ships, but it also features pilots as well as black holes. It will be Kickstarted this September.

OMGMayfair announced Oh My Goods!, a 2-4 player game where you’ll be a medieval craftsman trying to be the “most efficient, most profitable business owner in your village!”

Throwing It DownBased on Nickelodeon’s Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir, Throwdown will arrive on shelves August 17th and “players [will]take the role of one of the main characters (Miraculous Ladybug, Cat Noir, Hawk Moth), which they equip with weapons and allies, and attempt to disarm their opponents in a simple draw-attack-discard system.”

Cards and DiceDice Tower News reports on new products from AEG due out in September: a Smash Up expansion called Cease and Desist with “four new non-copyright infringing factions called Star Roamers, Astroknights, Changerbots, and Ignobles” and Fantahzee, a Yahtzee-style game where you’ll defend your town “from a horde of invading monsters through recruiting heroes and rolling dice to activate those heroes.”

Three from AsmodeeThree new card-based games based on popular Asmodee titles are coming this August: Struggle for Catan, a stand-alone card game adaptation of Settlers of Catan, Cash ‘n Guns: Team Spirit, a Cash ‘n Guns expansion that includes “new rules for team play and adding a ninth player,” and Finding Dory Spot It!, with “symbols [that]represent popular characters including Nemo, Dory, Marlin, Nemo’s school pals, and some familiar sea turtles.”

Dungeon CrawlingMy gaming group enjoyed the Road to Legend app for Descent: Journeys in the Dark, so this is welcome news: Fantasy Flight Games will be releasing a full-length campaign, Kindred Fire, soon. It will have a “massive, branching array of options as over twenty new quests enter the game.”

Heroes and MonstersSpeaking of Descent, the Shards of Everdark Hero and Monster Collection can now be pre-ordered. As described on the website, this collection will have “four heroes from the game’s first edition, breathing new life into them with revitalized artwork and figure sculpts. In the same way, two monster groups from the first edition rejoin the game, as well as an entirely new monster group—the dark minotaurs”

Additional MountainThe Hook Mountain Massacre, the next adventure deck for the Pathfinder app, is now in the App Store. According to Pocket Tactics, the addition includes “+2 weapons, more powerful spells, and magic armors with unique properties … [and]You can specialize your characters unlocking a bevy of new powers and feats.”

Mad ManActor and board gamer Rich Sommer talks with Asmodee about the hobby and what he played while on the set of Mad Men.